State-of-the-art production methods for a traditional speciality

In the end-to-end production lines developed by Anselmo for the manufacture of pasta,
u-remote is an essential component of the distributed automation system

Durum wheat flour and water – these simple basic ingredients have stimulated the creativity of chefs all over the world. Perhaps that's due, above all, to the variety of shapes that pasta comes in. Whether it's spaghetti of the ideal thickness and length or farfalle with its pinched centre and the two wings like a bow tie, every variety of pasta has its own character that makes it ideal for certain dishes.

Countless varieties of pasta are now served all over the world. So it's no wonder that Italian plant manufacturer Anselmo supplies its systems to customers in a total of 25 countries on four different continents.

The outstanding performance of the remote I/O system is seen to good effect in the Italian machinery manufacturer's systems, facilitating the seamless meshing of production processes.

Recipe for success: high-quality ingredients and advanced technology

As the global leader in the design, construction and installation of pasta production machinery, Anselmo offers turnkey solutions that even include special pasta packaging and storage systems.

“In addition to high-quality raw materials, good pasta production depends, above all, on having state-of-the-art technology. To enable our customers to produce perfect pasta, we are committed to modern production processes and the highest standards of quality,” says Valter Clerico of Anselmo, describing the aims of the Italian automation experts.

Valter Clerico, Electrical and Automation Department Manager from Anselmo, and Weidmüller’s Francesco Papa are pleased with their successful partnership

With this in mind, the entire automation architecture of the production plants was recently redesigned. Starting with the inputs and outputs in the main switch cabinet, which used to be local, Anselmo is banking on systems with a distributed structure in future. Distributed remote I/Os throughout the production lines permit even more flexible plant design and thus allow customer requirements of all kinds to be met to optimum effect.

“When selecting a remote I/O system suitable for the redesign, Anselmo had three clear requirements: to cut the amount of wiring, minimise installation time and reduce the space required,” recalls Francesco Papa of Weidmüller, who advises the Italian plant manufacturer. “Our u-remote system made it easy for us to fulfil these expectations. After analysing the automation structure together, we were able to develop a solution with Anselmo that has convinced right from the beginning.”

Reliable plant performance under all conditions

Depending on the type of plant, between six and nine u-remote stations are used in Anselmo's production lines. The high level of performance required in terms of communication is delivered by field bus couplers that comply with the PROFINET-IRT standard and permit fast, high-precision synchronisation between the I/Os, the control system and the moving parts of the plant. The high-performance u-remote station bus can handle up to 256 DIs/DOs in 20 microseconds. The resulting short reaction time, rapid responsiveness and high-precision mapping of operations in the plant ensure seamless meshing of production steps.

In addition, the SIL-3 power-feed modules used deliver additional advantages by allowing Anselmo to easily setup distributed safety solutions. Using a standard PLC and with standard station modules, status messages may be exchanged and actuators are shutdown safely in case of an emergency. A complex functionality is thus realised in a very simple and flexible way.

Comprehensive solutions for industrial connections

“We found u-remote to be a highly innovative solution right from the outset. The compact, modular structure of the system is ideal for our requirements in terms of plant design, which despite all the scope for standardisation always includes customer-specific elements as well,” reports Valter Clerico of Anselmo.

“The experts from Weidmüller have given us excellent advice on how to best set up, configure and position the I/O stations for the various types of plant we design. This allows us to focus all our attention on network configuration.”

Anselmo relies on Weidmüller not just for the remote I/O system but as a holistic partner for industrial connections: offering everything from uninterruptible power supply solutions, for example, to highly flexible switches for Ethernet communication, surge protection systems or perfectly matched components for cabinet and field wiring. The connections created with this range of solutions help to get peak performance out of Anselmo's production lines – and to put perfect pasta on plates all over the world.